1. Field of the Invention
One or more embodiments of the invention are related to roofing batten risers, specifically roofing batten risers that couple with roofing battens to provide space between the battens and the roof deck. More particularly, but not by way of limitation, one or more embodiments of the invention describe a roofing batten snap spacer with a base element that includes one or more coupling elements that non-permanently couple the snap spacer to roofing battens using a sliding attachment, a wrapping attachment, snap on attachment or any combination thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, roofing battens are strips of a material, usually wood, that attach to a roof deck before installation of roof tile. Roof tiles are generally nailed into each batten strip to secure the roof tile to the roof. Typically, with steep roof angles, the roofing batten strips assist a roofer when placing roof tiles on the roof while preventing the tile from falling off the roof during installation. Initially, batten strips were traditionally provided as 1″×2″×8″ pieces of wood that attach horizontally to a roof deck and roof tiles and nailed therein. Shortcomings of such a design were discovered, as the wooden batten strips would usually rot for example due to wind driven rainwater and melting snow under the roofing tiles. In addition, it was found that most often the wooden batten strips would act as a dam, causing water to pond and collect under the roofing tiles leading to a rotted out wooden batten and tiles slipping off the roof. In solving the above drawback, several ideas have been proposed.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,718,719 to Hagerty et al., entitled “Batten Strip For Roof Tiles”, discloses wooden battens that were manufactured with notches cut into the wooden battens to allow the collected rainwater to flow through the batten. The apparatus of Hagety et al., however, appears to remain in contact with water, and does not solve the issues at hand.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,357,193 to Morris, entitled “Roof Batten”, discloses a roof batten made entirely out of a plastic material and making the batten “honeycomb” in order for the water to flow through the batten and prevent rotting or decay. Even though the device of Morris is lighter in weight, it is more expensive.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,536,171 to Vandewater, entitled “Elevated Batten System”, discloses a batten system with an elevated batten by attaching small shims of wood under the batten in order to raise the batten off the roof deck. This allows the water to flow beneath the entire batten. The apparatus of Vendewater, however, appears to rot out the wooden shims, not solving the issue at hand.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,877,957 to Vandewater Jr., entitled “Method Of Installing An Improved Elevated Batten System”, discloses an improved version of the Vendewater reference above, using a plastic puck attachment to couple to the underside of the wooden batten. The apparatus of Vendewater Jr. however is a cumbersome assembly, as it is required to be purchased as a complete assembly with battens and risers fixedly attached.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,386,962 to Estes et al., entitled “Batten Riser Assembly”, discloses an assembly that allows a roofer to purchase a separate plastic “riser” attached to a plastic strip or string. With such a configuration, the roofer stretches the plastic strip with the riser across the roof, then places a wooden batten above the plastic strip and riser. The apparatus of Estes et al., however, appears to involve drawbacks as stretching the plastic strip with the riser on it across the roof is dangerous due to tripping issues, and laborious due to the various steps needed to securely attach the battens to the roof.
Traditionally, batten strips and batten strip risers are not equipped and structured with a loose element that is safe, quick and user friendly. Furthermore, traditional risers are not implemented as non-permanently attached risers that wrap around and/or snap onto a wooden batten without the need of pucks, plastic strips or a high weight. In addition, traditional assemblies require a user to purchase the wooden batten strips along with the risers or pucks (or any other traditionally and previously used elements) as an assembly. There are no known devices that allow for low-cost a “do-it-yourself” system wherein a user is able to purchase a snap spacer separately in large lightweight quantities, while purchasing wooden strips separately as desired.
In summary, there are no known roofing batten risers that are provided as separate loose components allowing a user the flexibility to assemble the elements as desired. In addition, for at least the limitations described above, there are no known risers that non-permanently attached or otherwise wrap around and/or snap onto a wooden batten, eliminating any additional cumbersome components needed to safely secure the wooden battens to a roof. For at least the limitations described above there is a need for a roofing batten snap spacer that solves the problems with the known devices.